Should I buy it?
What will it do for me?
Why did Starboard drop the hypersonic line?

cheers, Ben

PS. Current board carve 122, 100kg

John1

24th March 2010, 03:29 PM

If You are very strong and want to fight, I think you can sail very high against the wind and with a very high velocity.
it´s important with maximal good tuning with boompotition (not to high). Use a lot of downhaul for the sail and a sail with forward power. All this recommendations are to prevent the problem that the you will have the sensation that the forward foot is going out of the footstrap (to much power for the backleg). I think it´s written a lot of this discussion (hypersonic/fronfoot)
Good luck.

kiwiben

24th March 2010, 04:03 PM

thanks my man... i will look it up and take your advice... ben

Unregistered

24th March 2010, 04:52 PM

If you really only wanted ONE board and your usage is blasting, fun slalom and/or a bit of fun course racing, a Hyper is the ONLY choice.
I keep one overseas with some sails so I can travel the region to events.
Its still competitive, fast and will get you through the lulls better than almost anything.
It easily takes 6.0 to 9.0 although mine is the 105.
I cant tell you to buy it because I dont know what your aims / usage is ?
At your weight and assuming you do a bit of light wind free sailing, a 2nd hand Free Formula may be a better idea ?

kiwiben

25th March 2010, 05:38 AM

I am into blasting for fun, usually in 15-20knots but often in about 13 knots where the carve takes alot of sail to get someone my weight (100kg) planing. I even use a 9m sail with it sometimes... naughty boy, but it seems to work...:)

I wonder if the hyper's ability to "officially" take a 9m sail would get me going better, but then maybe the 11 litres less volume would cancel any gain...?

norm

26th March 2010, 02:29 AM

I have sailed the hyper 111 for 5 years with sails ranging from 5,5 to 9 sqm V8 sails. This board revolutionized my time on the water. Pre hyper - I went sailing when I had time and the wind was blowing, post hyper acquisition - I went sailing when time allowed, wind was no longer a factor.

There are a few factors to consider before buying on though. The stubby design makes it more difficult to pull the rig compared to a similar sized carve.
The fin is relatively small (stock fin is 42 cm). In the beginning, I struggled quite a bit to get the board into plane as I loaded the fin to early, causing spin outs (if that is what you call sideways sailing at 5 knots). There are a few threads her about this issue. On the other hand, in high winds and choppy conditions, the problem is opposite, the board accelerates so fast that you are blasting away at maximum speed before you have managed to put your feet in the straps. (I prefer to put the straps all the way out and back).
Jibes are also a bit tricky, you got to get the weight distribution right.
The short bow makes fast sailing in choppy conditions quite scary. You get the feel that it will nosedive into the next wave. Said so, it never does.
I guess the board was discontinued as it is a full fledged slalom board which require a fine tuned rig and rider - but it is not as fast as the Sonic/ Isonics of the world. But if you have the skills - I would claim that it is the best board money can buy as a one board solution for blasting purposes.
(ps - I weigh 80 kg and for me planing at 13 knots is a breeze. I believe that it should be possible for you as well, but to be sure, you should get more advice on this)
Good luck

kiwiben

26th March 2010, 03:25 AM

thanks Norm, sounds encouraging... do you think it would plane in lighter winds than my carve 121?

norm

26th March 2010, 06:20 AM

I guess it should plane in less wind as the hyper is 10,5 cm wider overall and the tail is 12 cm wider (2005 specifications), but I have not tried the carve so it is a theoretical answer.

Tip: Consider using a bigger fin for the really light wind days will help a lot with the early planing.

n

Roger

26th March 2010, 07:46 AM

Hi Kiwi Ben,
At 100 kilos, the Hyper 125 would most likely be better for you.
All the Hypersonics "shared" the same bottom/planing surface configuration in a particular year model.
First one to come out in 2003 was the Hyper 105, but many larger/heavier sailors felt the volume was too low, and had issues getting the 105 ltr Hyper going. So later in the model year Starboard came out with the 125 liter. The outline and bottom shapes were the same, the 125 was simply "thicker" (they added the extra volume to the top of the board vs the bottom or width).
In the second year, 2004, I had all 3 Hypersonics (133/111/96 liters).
The bottom shapes were identical, and the 133 and 111 had identical outline shapes.
The Hyper 96 was very slightly narrower at the tail.
At 100 kg. you can probably get the Hyper 111 going, but you are going to be very near the semi-sinker threshold with a rig as large as 9.0 m2.
Not to discourage you, but getting acquainted with and learning to "love" the Hypersonics was not real easy for alot of sailors.
You either loved them, or hated them.
If you want a challenge, pick up the Hyper 111 for $400 and let us know how you get along with it.
Roger

kiwiben

26th March 2010, 12:30 PM

I am blessed with the prescence of greatness in the name of Roger... thank you Guru!

mmm interesting... I do like a challenge. The biggest challenge may be managing to buy the board without my wife noticing... :) But seriously, I would love to have that board because it seems to be such a polarising, radical, game changer. It would be like owning a 1974 fender telecaster. (Or whatever year they came out with it was). Riding it for the first time would be like having sex with a hermaphrodite. As in, you may not like it but it would be a crying shame to turn down the opportunity if it came along... OK maybe I need to find another metaphor...

Anyway, let's assume I will sink unless moving. (the carve pretty much does this already if I take longer than 3 seconds to uphaul my 9m) I don't mind waterstarting with my 9m, so assuming i can get the rig up in light winds do you think I will thereafter have a more speedy and satisfying session with the Hyper vs. the carve?

Maybe this is a new thread, but it is interesting they made the boards simply thicker to boost volume. This must surely be of value only in an uphauling situation vs. a waterstart situation. I say this because in a W/start you have effectively admitted defeat in trying to stand and uphaul and are using the hull shape (as it moves forward) to rise and hold your weight. In theory if all hypers had the same shape on the bottom surface they would all rise equally well once moving. Do you agree guru? Once the boards are cruising/planing all that extra volume would be well above the waterline so it would just be useless weight wouldn't it? I think us big guys should get extra width or something with our extra volume, in any board that is primarily expected to be waterstarted.

I am so jealous of you rich guys that can buy new gear.

Unregistered

26th March 2010, 01:15 PM

Ben,
You have pretty much now answered the question !
A challenge ? Yes it will certainly be that.
Its too close in volume and sail range to be a "2nd" board.
The Hyper has a broader range of attributes.
You talk about 13 knots and 100 kgs, which brings me neatly to the final solution.
Buy it, love it and then flog the Carve (if you really only want ONE board).
I imagine the Carve will be easier to sell.
The ultimate solution though, is find an old Free Formula or possibly an early Formula and a 10.0 or 10.5 no cam sail.
You will double your (happy) planing days.
Good luck.

John Kemsley

26th March 2010, 07:43 PM

Hmmm not sure there, I had a 111 it was ok, but at my weight 95kg I found the 133 much better.

It was an awesome board when planing, though there was no acceleration just slow then "shit this is scary" - it also went thru lulls really well. When not on the plane it was an absolute pig - slogging on one is not a comfortable experience.

I loved mine, but it was only when i moved on to a more "normal" shape that I realised how technical it had been to sail.

It went upwind like stonk, was really quick, could take a 9.4 lightning down to a 6.0. It fits in any vehicle (short as). Short fins means shallower water that other boards.

My advice see if you can have a demo, its like marmite - you will love it or hate it.

kiwiben

27th March 2010, 05:45 AM

thanks guys... food for thought indeed. The bidding ends tonight... i will let you know what happens... John kemsley you may have saved my $. I may hang out for a 125 or 133 or just be happy with the Carve and look for a much bigger light wind board.

the hYper just looks so evil though, I want it it with an unearthly desire which shall not speak its name...

mark h

27th March 2010, 07:26 AM

Can't help but chip in here:) I had a D-ram 125 for 18-months then got a Wood 105 and had that for 18-months as well. I loved them both. The HS was one of my all time favourits (Sonic 100 is my all time favourit).

Very smooth in open sea's kinda felt like a cushion soft ride over chop, took a 6m up to 9m, I was on Gaastra Nitro's then and found the 10.4m a bit to big on a HS, I'm 105kg/194cm. Lighter sailors might be OK with XXL sails.

Truthfully speeking, the HS125 did not get going any earlier than the HS105, but it was a lot more comfy to slog on with bigger sails if the wind disappeared.

I very nearly changed the HS105 wood for a newer HS111 wood, but after trying one, I much prefered the original HS105. It felt more direct, it was definetly faster (according to my GPS). Once took the HS105 to 37k peak with the standard 3cm fin, one of the Dutchie's had 41k peak, so its no slouch.

The HS111 had more rocker in the nose, this was to stop the nose catching chop (I never had a problem with the catching chop though). It also had a lot of kick in tail section to improve gybing. I think the changes on the newer HS was to try to make it more accessible to the masses. The original HS was king in my books.

I eventually changed the HS to a Sonic 110, and like John K say's, when you jump onto a normal slalom board you realise just how technical/high imput the HS was to get going compaired to normal slalom kit. Once going, its not at all technical, possibly easier than traditional shapes as it was very forgiving at speed. It went upwind/down wind almost like a mini formula. One thing for sure is, if you can dial a HS, it will imrove you technic and make other slalom boards feel easy:)

If you can get the original HS105/125, I'd be looking at that and save a few £££.

Roger

27th March 2010, 11:13 AM

Hi Kiwiben,
I think what you will find most interesting (and perhaps frustrating) is that on the Hypersonics, you need to learn to manage your fore and aft positioning much more carefully than on your Carve or any board that's longer and has a bit longer volume distribution.
I'm sure you can sail the Hyper 111 in windspeeds that you probably cannot waterstart in, once you learn the very delicate fore and aft weight positioning.
Move forward one inch and the nose sinks.... quickly! Move back an extra inch, and the tail begins to sink (also pretty rapidly).
Side to side (athwartships) weight distribution is not nearly so critical on the Hypersonics as it was on longer narrower slalom and race boards from the early and mid 1990's.
Since I'm a "guru" (someone else's term, not mine) and I have worked with Starboard in the USA and around the world since 1998, I get a few boards each year to put in a demo fleet and take around the USA for local sailors to try out.
Back in the day, I absolutely loved the Hypersonics, and since I was a little lighter in weight then (2004) I was given all 3 for the demo fleet. I did not own them, they belonged to the distributor, and were returned in near new condition at the end of the year.
I did keep the Hyper 96 and still have it as it's a classic board and it's still one of my favorites when the conditons are right for it.
Go for it, you will either fall in love with the Hyper 111, or you will learn to dislike it very quickly.
Yes, once you are up and sailing, all 3 boards ride pretty much the same, but the ability to uphaul big sails extends the range into the lighter wind arena.
Hope this helps,

HS 111 with fully cambered race sail in larger size, rider 70 kg dry still floats at rest but not that much freeboard and fore aft trim is critical when things are slow.

Can confirm it's acceleration so you have to be quick to get into the straps. Have tried all combination of strap positions and settled on back and out as actually the quickest way to get into when stepping back as the board accelerates away and comfortable for blasting.

Each run is like a sprint rather than a cruise so a good work out assured. Responds to efficient gybing technique but still can be stuffed through turns on its tail if need be. By efficient I mean right weight positions and transfers and well coordinated sail movements.

After a while the short nose seems normal - mast track trim appears sensitive to unsticking the board and higher wind control. Is most intuitive when using full cambered sails v freerace sails where the positioning is more sail brand dependent. So there you have a critical consideration - it likes cambered sails but will tolerate other kinds too.

Great board if you want to invest the time. Downside is having done that there is nothing out there as a direct replacement although something like the iSonic 101 seems the best.

Would I buy a HS again. Definitely, but second time around it would be sub 100 litre .

kiwiben

28th March 2010, 10:30 AM

You guys are awesome... thanks for the tips. As it happend i got drunk and missed the auction... and it got passed in. hopefully it will reapperaer for a cheaper reserve and I will have a very happy ending. I want it, oh god i want it!

Unregistered

29th March 2010, 12:28 PM

why one would want to have sex with a hermaphrodite is beyond many, or most ( not anyones) guess , but yes find a different example LOL....

shredulato

Deja Vu

30th March 2010, 09:40 AM

You guys are awesome... thanks for the tips. As it happend i got drunk and missed the auction... and it got passed in. hopefully it will reapperaer for a cheaper reserve and I will have a very happy ending. I want it, oh god i want it!

You really need to try this board first. Personally, the Hypersonic didn't work for me.

RonnieS

9th April 2010, 06:17 AM

Better than getting drunk and sh*gging the hermaphrodite :-)

kiwiben

16th March 2011, 08:00 AM

hi guys, I'm back again... In the end I purchased a hypersonic 105 last year for US$200. not the right volume for me but it was basically free so it was an easy buy... But uphauling? Forget about it!

First off I had trouble getting my back foot in the straps without it catching the fast moving water and thereby splitting my torso from my crotch all the way up to my second rib. I shamefully confess my levels of perseverance were not enough to work through this challenge. However, yesterday all that changed...

I put a hole in my carve 121 last month and was too lazy to fix it, so yesterday it was unavailable. It looked like really strong wind so I chucked my little wave board on the trailer. I was about to also load my Carve 151 in case the wind was light, but I remembered the hypers can take big sails. So for some reason I loaded the hyper instead as my lightwind option.

I got to my site and the wind seemed much weaker than I predicted. I almost went home. The hyper then called my name: "pick me... pick me!" Alright you ugly freak, I'll give you one last chance. I rigged my 8.4m V8 and half heartedly got in the water. After the familiar crotch splitting result trying to get in the back straps I decided something must change... The breakthrough? I took my booties off. OMG the difference was amazing. I could stick my back foot in even before completing the waterstart and then yank the board with my feet to whatever angle and blast off to gloriously fast planing almost instantly.

Yes it took the 8.4m with ease. Yes it ignored the lulls. Yes it handled chop like it was on an aircushion. I know my carve 121 so well that I bet I would have spent 30% of yesterday slogging if I was on it instead. The carve 151 would have been planing easy enough but just too big to really have an exciting ride.

So, in my opinion, the Hypersonic 105 is awesome.

I must admit though it never really went ballistic, speed wise. Maybe it is the shitty old fin I have fitted, or maybe the V8 has no top end... I will experiment and see what scary speeds I can wring out of the old girl...

kiwiben

16th March 2011, 08:04 AM

I even nailed about 75% of my Jibes and 90% of my tacks. This is unheard of for me!

Jean-Marc

20th March 2011, 05:19 AM

What fin did you fit to your HS105 with your 8.4 sail?
The original 2003 Drake 34 cm or Drake 44 cm fin?
Mast-track and footstraps setting ?

Cheers!

JM

kiwiben

21st March 2011, 03:45 AM

I used the longer of the fins it came with. Some one has painted it and the paint is chipping off... not exactly a highly tuned weapon.

But yesterday I swapped to my C3 venom 42cm and it was definitely feeling faster. Unfortunately the wind was less than the other day, so i couldn't see if it would really fly...

kiwiben

2nd August 2011, 09:20 AM

I took the hyper out in really strong wind the other day with my Pryde RSII 6.2m sail. It was pretty good, but then I jumped on my 90litre wave board and it was alot faster, easier to control and therefore more fun.
This makes me feel the hyper is going to be of most value to me in light to moderate winds.

Jean-Marc

6th August 2011, 02:06 AM

I'm using HS105 since almost 9 years... The secret to let fly the HS105 at high speed is to use ridiculously small fins for her size. I use a 32 cm fin with 8.2 sail or a 26 cm fin with 6.6 & 5.4 sails when well- to over-powered.
Big fins are usually used with large sails when underpowered to well-powered: a 32 cm fin with 6.6 m2, a 40 cm fin with 8.2 m2 or a 55 cm fin with 11 m2 sail. Sure, other boards are faster than HS105 but no current iSonic can match such a huge wind range with just 4 fins and 4 sails. HS105 is a true slalom M-XL-mini Formula crossover that is still unique and remains unmatched so far. A true collector for those who wants a single racing hull instead of 3.

Cheers !

JM

Philip

6th August 2011, 06:06 AM

Yes, my HS111 is definitely a keeper. With 5.8m cambered sail am using 29cm fin. For my weight it does get a bit bouncy in the gybes with that size sail but the glide through the lulls is really something. Standard 42cm fin with 8.xx sail works well but as remarked by Jean-Marc I believe a 40cm would be just about right.

IRL-250

6th August 2011, 06:21 AM

Loved my Hypersonic 105 that i had and really regretted selling it but had to due to sponsorship with another board brand i had at the time. Was a perfect one board solution but was like Marmite, you either loved it or hated it but for me was a great board with a 6.5 to 9.0m. Might get another one if i find one in good condition

JonnieUtah

12th October 2011, 03:32 AM

I ran the original hyper sonic 105 for a few seasons and it was a pure joy. If you can handle wider boards which generate a big degree of lift then the board is awesome and still pretty high performance, the most amazing feeling is gliding or slicing through lulls which is still one of the most bizarre things - the board is good but does require a certain type of attitude. Both I, and a good pal of mine who now has a RRD 135 as his big board absolutely loved it, both on flat water and also in some pretty big coastal swell! Sold mine.... now have a 2011 117 carbon - now that is a sexy looking board!